When The Fire Goes Out
by A Warrior At Heart
Summary: Sandstorm was heartbroken when her lost her beloved mate, Firestar, after he died to save the Clans from the Dark Forest. But her Clan is also devastated, so she must deal with her grief and loss and step up her help her Clan until it is her time to join StarClan and see Firestar again.
1. Part 1: Loss

**Hi everyone! Just a few days ago, I woke up in the middle of the night with a random idea for a story (does anyone else ever do that?) and of course, I didn't want to lose it, so I got up and wrote it down. This was the idea. I thought, it would be cool to write a story from Sandstorm's perspective after Firestar dies. So here is the first part. I've planned four parts altogether, but there may be more (knowing me).**

 **I haven't seen hardly any fanfictions with Sandstorm recently, so I'm glad I decided to write one about her. I really like her character, and I felt sad that she was only a minor minor background pretty much for everything after the first arc (until the first book of a Vision of Shadows). I feel like she deserves more attention and love and I thought it would be really interesting to explore what the time was like for her after Firestar's death leading up to her own, because other than Bramblestar's Storm and Crowfeather's Trial (which are both in the first six moons after the Great Battle), there is hardly anything known about what happens to the Clans during the 18 moons between the arcs.**

 **This is a good segway to my warning: SPOILER ALERT! If you have not read the Last Hope, Bramblestar's Storm, or The Apprentice's Quest (and maybe Crowfeather's Trial) and do not wish them spoiled for you, DO NOT READ ON! This is your warning! Please don't leave any reviews complaining about spoilers!**

 **Still here? Oh, good. This first part is the very last few pages of the Last Hope, but from Sandstorm's perspective. I really like her, so I hope I did her justice. The next few parts might contain/mention events from the other books I listed above, but they won't this directly of a rewrite. We will also probably see a lot of the old protagonists like Leafpool, Squirrelflight, Bramblestar, maybe Jayfeather and Lionblaze a little, and especially Dustpelt. Both he and Sandstorm went through a huge lost and I think it would be nice for them to bond a little.**

 **Now, with all of that out of the way, please enjoy!**

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 **Part 1: Loss**

Thunder rumbled high in the cloud-choked heavens. Rain pounded down, washing over the devastation that was ThunderClan's camp. Ragged, wounded cats stood strewn across the clearing. They all gazed, frozen with shock at a dark shape in the center of a large ring. A body lay in the slimy blood-stained grass of the camp floor. There had been two, locked in a fierce battle that would decide the fate of the Clans. But now there was one.

"Firestar!" A desperate wail rang above the sound of the storm. As Sandstorm's frozen paws forced her forward, she was dimly aware that the voice had been her's. She wasn't aware of anything else; she trained her eyes solely on the unmoving sodden form of her mate.

Sandstorm halted as she reached his side. Her rapid heartbeat sounded deafening in her ears. Her frenzied gaze flickered over him, searching for any sign of life. But it was in vain.

"No!" Sandstorm swallowed a sob. "No." The ginger she-cat couldn't believe it. The great ThunderClan leader, the father of their daughters, her mate, and the love of her life, Firestar, was dead. She didn't want to believe it. But she knew it was true, despite the small part of her that wanted to cling to the hope, impossible as a sunbeam at night, that he was only losing another life. It had never been who she was; to believe in the impossible.

"I told you not to waste your final life," Sandstorm whispered as she crouched beside her mate's fallen body and buried her nose in his ginger fur.

"He didn't waste it." Brambleclaw appeared at her side. Wounds crisscrossed the deputy's pelt, and his eyes shone with sorrow, but he stood firm, ready to take up the mantle as the leader of ThunderClan.

"Fire will save the Clans," Leafpool breathed, from somewhere nearby.

Another sob rose in Sandstorm's throat. This time, she let it out in a soft broken-hearted cry. _In the end, fire did save all the Clans—many times over. We all owe him our lives. I wish he didn't have to pay with his. Oh, Firestar…_

Graystripe pushed past several cats to crouch beside Sandstorm. She looked at him, and their gazes met, the mate and best friend sharing a tender moment of those who were closest to him. "I would have taken your place if you had let me," he lamented.

"Firestar! When you see her, tell Ferncloud I love her." Dustpelt's voice was clenched with grief as he called out a final message to his beloved mate. Sandstorm, roused from her pain for a moment, realized with a heavy heart that her oldest friend had lost his partner, Ferncloud, as well. Ferncloud was among those slain in battle, doing what her heart called her to; defending the nursery and the Clans' youngest until her last breath.

Fresh raindrops mixed with bitter, salty teardrops on Sandstorm's pale ginger cheeks. Sob after sob racked her body as she collapsed, half covering Firestar's body with her own. Other cats pressed close, murmuring condolences, swapping memories, sharing their grief. But she heard none of them, only smelled Leafpool's herb-tainted scent as the medicine cat crept beside her, and felt Squirrelflight's comforting lick on the top of her head, though she knew both her daughters were as deep in the frigid lake of grief as she was.

"The battle is over! Our victory belongs to Firestar!" Brambleclaw declared.

Sandstorm raised her head a little, roused from her misty gloom of grief by the deputy's—no, new leader's—ringing proclamation. The rain had slowed to a faint drizzle, and a moonbeam shone on her and Firestar's blending ginger pelts. From between the blue-gray storm clouds, the white moon and few glimmering stars poked hesitantly through.

Slowly, Sandstorm became aware that her Clanmates were very still, and looked around, confused, until she saw what they were watching. Sandstorm's mouth dropped open, and her eyes stretched wide. A regal she-cat, blue-gray as the storm clouds, with glimmers that looked like fallen stars around her paws, stood in the camp entrance. It was a StarClan warrior, Bluestar, the former leader of ThunderClan. The blue-gray she-cat padded lightly forward, joined by other glimmering cats; Redtail, Silverstream, Brindleface, Swiftpaw, Yellowfang, Runningwind, and Lionheart; all friends, family, and Clanmates who she hadn't thought she would see again until it was her time to join them.

Sandstorm stared as the StarClan cats seemed to float soundlessly toward her. The other Clan cats drew back, awe-stricken, as they circled her and Firestar's body. Jayfeather stepped forward and began to speak, explaining to the Clan that these were the cats who had given Firestar his nine lives.

Lionheart who had given Firestar his first life, a life for courage.

Redtail, who had given him justice.

Silverstream gave a life for loyalty.

Runningwind gave him tireless energy.

Brindleface had given Firestar a life for protection.

Swiftpaw gave mentoring.

Yellowfang gave a life for compassion.

And Bluestar had given him a life for nobility, certainty, and faith, though Firestar was the noblest cat she knew, and always had an unwavering faith in his ancestors. Bluestar always knew that Firestar would succeed in saving not only his Clan but all of the Clans.

As Jayfeather paused, Bluestar stepped forward. Her paws touched Firestar's pelt as she gazed deeply into Sandstorm's tear-filled eyes. "Spottedleaf isn't with StarClan anymore. But she gave Firestar a life for love."

 _Oh, my love._ Sandstorm trembled as a sob shook her entire body. Her legs quaked underneath her, threatening to collapse underneath her again. Sorrow filled her heart to the brim so it felt like it might burst. Through her tear-blurred gaze, Sandstorm saw the StarClan cats drew closer around them, all touching Firestar's body. Then, she gasped, hardly daring to believe her eyes as the ginger shape of a cat with gleaming emerald eyes rose from the slumped body.

"F-firestar?" Sandstorm whispered. _Can it be? Is he-is he alive?_ No, it was too good to be true, but she could help her heart rising in her chest as if it had sprouted wings.

"His spirit is leaving," Jayfeather murmured.

Firestar's green eyes that shone like stars swept over the ragged crowd in a silent, but warm final farewell to his beloved Clan.

"It's time to go," Bluestar prompted.

Firestar glanced at her and nodded. He dipped his head low to Brambleclaw, acknowledging the dark brown tabby tom as the new leader of ThunderClan. Sandstorm's throat tightened as Firestar turned his gaze to her. Their eyes locked as he glided to her, silently conveying all the emotions that they had not the way nor the time to express in words. Sandstorm's heart swelled with a bittersweet mixture of great love, and deep sorrow as her mate tenderly touched his muzzle to her's. She closed her eyes as she breathed in his scent now tainted with the smell of starlight, willing this moment to last an eternity so he would never have to leave her.

All too soon, Firestar pulled away. Sandstorm's eyes snapped open. She followed him with her glistening grief-filled eyes as he turned and bounded to join the other StarClan warriors. Her wounded heart tugged after him, wanting nothing more in the world to follow. But to her great sadness, she knew she couldn't. Firestar was a spirit cat now; he belonged in StarClan's hunting grounds, watching over the Clans. Her place was here as a warrior of ThunderClan in her Clan's territory, bound by the restraints of the physical world.

Around her there were gasps and startled cries from the ThunderClan cats as the spirits of their other fallen Clanmates rose and padded to join the StarClan warriors. Hollyleaf wove through the crowd, pausing for a moment beside her brothers, Jayfeather and Lionblaze. Mousefur's spirit bounced like a kit across the hollow. Ferncloud rose from where'd she fallen beside the nursery and followed the others, looking back once over her shoulder at Dustpelt. Glints of starlight sparkled in the blackness of the night around the thorn barrier as the StarClan warriors took their leave.

Sandstorm led her head and tail droop. Her body felt heavy as a boulder with exhaustion and grief. Her eyes were dry of tears, but her broken heart felt so filled with sorrow that it might never heal. All she wanted to do now was curl up in her nest and forget the world.

 _No,_ Sandstorm thought, another feeling flooding through her, strengthening her body, conviction. _We lost so many Clanmates, but we survived the Dark Forest. Everyone is injured and tired, but we can go on. I miss Firestar terribly, but I know he'd want me to continue, to keep helping and fighting for our Clan. I must go on._

Sandstorm raised her head and looked around her at her tired, battered, wounded Clanmates. Her gaze landed on Brambleclaw standing near the center of the ring. The tom stood strong and determined, ready to lead his Clan into a new era.

Sandstorm smiled slightly though her sadness as she threw her head back. "Bramblestar!"

"Bramblestar! Bramblestar!" The Clan joined in, yowling his name to the heavens above.

Above them all, high in the deep blue-black of the night sky, a new bright star appeared.

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 **Thank you for reading! I had a lot of fun (and heart-wrenching moments) writing this and I should be back with Part 2: Grief soon.** **Who knows, with the amount of ideas I have this could turn into a full-length story. I also promise that my author's notes won't be that long in the future!** **Please follow, favorite, and review!**

 **\- A Warrior At Heart**


	2. Part 2: Grieving

**Part 2: Grieving**

 _Sandstorm stood in the center of a dark meadow. The gray trunks of towering trees created a wide ring around her. High above her glittered countless stars in the deep blue-black heavens._

 _A flash of ginger fur from between shadowy trees caught Sandstorm's eye. She pivoted, her heart leaping in her chest. A ginger tom appeared from between the trees. His back was to her, but she instantly knew who he was._

 _Lush grass flattened under Sandstorm's paws as she rushed to the treeline, bright hope tainted with longing coursing through her. She opened her mouth to call his name, but she stopped short. The ginger cat had moved, and he was now disappearing into the shadows of the forest. Confusion clouded Sandstorm's mind. Why was he walking away? Did he not want to see her?_

 _"Firestar!" Sandstorm called, sprinting after him into the woods. "Firestar, wait!" She wove between tree trunks, leaped over stones and ducked under overhanging branches as she followed the fleeing ginger tom. It as if the forest itself was trying to stop her from reaching him._

 _Sandstorm slowed eventually, her breath coming in short gasps. Mist obscured the dark trees around her, and she could no longer see him. She opened her mouth for one final desperate cry, "Firestar!"_

"Sandstorm. Sandstorm, wake up." A paw gently prodded her shoulder.

Sandstorm's green eyes flew open, and she sprung to her paws, alarm making the fur along her spine stand up, and her claws instinctively slide out. "What's going on?"

"Easy there, everything's fine," Squirrelflight reassured her, though the dark ginger she-cat took a step back.

Seeing that it was only her daughter, the pale ginger she-cat relaxed. She sheathed her claws and forced her fur to lay flat. Looking around herself, she noted that every other nest in the warriors' den was empty and the morning sun shone brightly between the tightly woven branches.

"Were you dreaming about Firestar again?" Squirrelflight looked concerned as if Sandstorm were a little kit with nightmares. "You were calling his name in your sleep."

Sandstorm nodded mutely. She fidgeted, both touched and uncomfortable by her daughter's concern as if their roles as mother and daughter were reversed. "Why did you wake me up?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Right," Squirrelflight said, instantly becoming more professional, like the deputy she had been for a moon now. "I was hoping that you could lead a hunting patrol to the WindClan border, but maybe not—"

"No, I can do it," Sandstorm insisted.

A frown crossed Squirrelflight's face. "All right, but maybe you should see Leafpool before you go. She can help you."

"With what?" Sandstorm shook her head as she headed for the entrance. "Grief? Nightmares? Squirrelflight, no herb that can cure either of those." Sandstorm paused, softening at the worried look in Squirrelflight's green eyes. _So much like her father's,_ she thought with a pang of sorrow. "Don't worry. I'll be fine."

. . .

Sandstorm stopped, the brisk wind blowing the smell of the scent markers on either side of the rushing stream to her nose. She raised her tail signaling for her hunting patrol to halt.

"All right," Sandstorm said as she turned to her patrol. "Let's fan out and search for some prey, maybe even a stray rabbit from the moor. But remember, do not cross the border for any reason. We don't need any more trouble that we've already had with WindClan in the past moon."

Her patrol, consisting of Mousewhisker, Thornclaw, Blossomfall, and Dustpelt nodded, and then they split up to search for prey. Sandstorm stood there for a moment, gazing out over the hills of WindClan's territory, her mind not on the hunt but somewhere else entirely. She snapped out of it and turned briskly back toward her territory, her mouth open as she tasted for prey scents.

The strong scent of mouse wafted into her nose. Sandstorm dropped into a crouch, her thorough gaze scanning the land around her until her sharp eyes spotted the deep brown fur of a mouse, nearly camouflaged against the dead brown grass of Leafbare about two dozen tail-lengths away. She let her instincts take over, and dropped into a low crouch, gliding toward her prey with smooth strides.

Sandstorm stopped once she was four tail-lengths away and prepared to pounce on the unsuspecting mouse. Suddenly, the image of Firestar's fleeing shape from her dream flashed in front of her eyes. She stumbled, blinking rapidly as she tried to clear her mind. By the time she recovered her balance, her heavy footfalls had alerted the mouse, and it had scurried away.

"Mouse-dung!" Sandstorm cursed. _You shouldn't have been distracted like that!_ She scolded herself. _The Clan needed that prey!_

The pale ginger she-cat set her jaw in determination and hurried onward in the direction of her lake. She put her nose to the frozen ground as she searched for more of the scarce prey, determined not to miss another catch.

As she rounded the side of a maple tree, she stopped short as she caught sight a hare nibbling at a few dead grass stems, hardly daring to believe her good luck. This hare would be enough to feed the elders and the queens. Her eyes never left her target as she dropped into a crouch and stalked toward the hare.

Sandstorm's gaze was intent on the hare, resolving not to mess up this time, but she failed to notice a fallen twig in her path until it was too late. The booming crack of dead wood made the hare's head snap up. It sat there for a moment, quivering, then it raced away.

Sandstorm groaned in frustration, but she gave chase, her paws beating the cold earth. She dashed through the forest, hot on the trail of her prey. Suddenly, it seemed as though she wasn't chasing the hare at all, but Firestar as he fled from her. Grief made Sandstorm's throat tighten and longing clawed at her tender heart.

 _I can't believe it's been a moon since the Great Battle. I wish more than anything else that I could see him again, for real, not in that terrible dream._

Sandstorm blinked, and then she found herself back in the real world, on a collision path with a tree. She dug her claws into the frosted dead leaves in a desperate attempt to stop, but she ended up tumbling head over tail into the trunk.

"Hey! Are you okay?" A concerned voice rang out.

Groaning with pain, Sandstorm picked herself up off the ground and shook out her pale ginger pelt. Once her blurry vision cleared, she saw Blossomfall bounding toward her, an anxious expression on her face, and the hare dangling from her jaws.

"I'm fine," Sandstorm said from between heavy breaths. "Great catch. That hare is enough to feed many cats."

"I only caught it because you practically chased it into my paws." Blossomfall looked at her paws, though by her pleased smile, Sandstorm could see that the praise meant a lot to the tortoiseshell she-cat. Ever since the Great Battle, the former Dark Forest trainees, including Blossomfall, had been working extra hard to prove themselves loyal to their Clans.

"Why don't you bury that and then keep hunting?" Sandstorm suggested. "I'm going to sit for a moment and catch my breath."

Blossomfall nodded, and she picked up the hare before she trotted away. Sandstorm plopped on the ground right where she was, her head dropping.

"You're very distracted today," a dry voice commented.

Sandstorm jumped and looked around herself. She relaxed once she saw Dustpelt standing nearby. Sandstorm thumped the ground next to her with her tail, inviting him to take a seat.

Dustpelt gently eased himself into a seated position beside her, and let out a long sigh. He tucked his tail around his paws and stared off into space, appearing to be in another world entirely.

Sandstorm turned her head, studying her old friend. His once sleek brown tabby pelt was now dull, and she could see his ribs from underneath his fur. Age showed in his silver muzzle, and ever-lingering tiredness was apparent in his slumped shoulders. Sandstorm imagined that she must appear similar.

"Do you remember…" Sandstorm started after a long silence. "Do you remember when we were apprentices?"

"Yes," Dustpelt answered quietly, though he still gazed at thin air.

"Do you remember all those days of training with Redtail and Whitestorm? All those late nights we sat up in the apprentice's den? How Ravenpaw was too shy to ask us to be quiet?"

"Yes, I remember." A faint smile appeared Dustpelt's face. He turned his head to meet Sandstorm's gaze. "There was that one time when you cheated on your assessment, but you owned up and caught twice the amount of prey as punishment. And I kept challenging you to races, but you always won." A shadow crossed his face. "So much time has passed."

"Yes. So much has happened. Bad things; Tigerstar and BloodClan, the Great Journey, the Great Battle, but good ones too, much more so it outshines the bad." A sad, but hopeful smile flickered across Sandstorm's face.

Dustpelt shook his head gravely. "Some many times through, it seemed as though it was our darkest hour, and the bad would triumph over the good."

"I know." Sandstorm nodded in solemn agreement. "But it never happened. The Clans have survived every trial, even the Great Battle. ThunderClan is recovering with Bramblestar leading us."

"It almost did. The Dark Forest nearly destroyed us. They divided the Clans, and infiltrated us, turning our Clanmates against us. Then they attacked and nearly won." The fur on the back of Dustpelt's neck rose. He lashed his tail agitatedly.

"But we did win. We united."

"We only won at the price of many of our beloved Clanmates. And you'd think we'd stay united after what we've been through, but just a moon after the Great Battle, Onestar is stirring up trouble, and there are those wretched stoats. Many don't trust the Dark Forest Cats trainees. Cats are dying again; look at Nightcloud. She was a strong and brave WindClan warrior who survived the Great Battle, only to be killed by stoats. Some cats in WindClan even say that it was her son, Breezepelt, a former dark forest trainee's fault. Life is precious. The existence of the Clans is precarious. Either can be gone in an instant."

Sandstorm tilted her head as she processed Dustpelt's words. She searched his dark, angry gaze and had a spark of realization. "You must miss her terribly." She leaned forward and pressed her nose comfortingly to his ear.

Dustpelt swallowed hard as if he was stifling a sob. "Yes," he rasped, so quiet Sandstorm almost couldn't hear him. Though Dustpelt's heart was hardened not to permit tears, she knew he was still grieving deeply for Ferncloud.

Dustpelt glanced, almost timidly, at her. "Do you miss him?"

Tears pricked the corners of Sandstorm's eyes. She wasn't as strong as him. "Yes," she whispered, "sometimes so much it hurts like a deep open wound."

"Then we share those wounds," Dustpelt replied simply, but those five words said everything Sandstorm needed to hear. She leaned into Dustpelt, resting her head on his neck, at first tense, until she felt his thin tail wrap around her side. Tears rolled down Sandstorm's cheeks, and she allowed herself to cry like she hadn't in a long time. Dustpelt sat in stoic silence, but he grieved in his own way.

At long last, Dustpelt stirred. He glanced up at the setting sun. "We should gather the patrol and return to camp."

"Yes, we should," Sandstorm agreed. Her tears had dried, and she sat in comfortable, content silence. Neither her nor Dustpelt made any move to go.

"The Clan needs us," Dustpelt said after another pause. He stood, stretching out his stiff legs.

"Yes." Sandstorm stood as well and arched her back. She touched noses with Dustpelt. "The Clan needs us."

. . .

The setting sun spilled deep orange light over ThunderClan's forest. Sandstorm's hunting patrol emerged from the thorn tunnel into the hollow. Neither Sandstorm nor Dustpelt had caught any much prey, but Thornclaw, Blossomfall, and Mousewhisker more than made up for it with several pieces each. Sandstorm lugged Blossomfall's hare over to the fresh-kill pile, the one she had failed the catch.

Squirrelflight trotted up to Sandstorm as she dropped the hare on the pile. "Good catch."

"Oh, I didn't catch the hare," Sandstorm corrected. "It belongs to Blossomfall."

"Oh." Squirrelflight looked a little surprised. "Did the hunt go well?"

"Not really," Sandstorm admitted. "I didn't catch anything because I was very distracted."

Squirrelflight's brow wrinkled with concern. She stepped closer to her mother. "Was it because of the dream you had?"

Sandstorm remained quiet for a moment. "Yes," she confessed. "I dreamed about Firestar again. I know he's watching over us, but I guess I'm still grieving for him. I want nothing more than to see him again, even for a moment. Those dreams about him are torture."

"Oh, Sandstorm," Squirrelflight murmured. She pressed her flank against her mother's. "I miss him too." They stood in silence for a moment before Squirrelflight moved away, turning to face the pale ginger she-cat. "But we must go on. ThunderClan needs our strength."

"Yes. The Clan is doing well with you as deputy and Leafpool as one of the medicine cats again." Sandstorm gaze her daughter a fond look.

For a moment, Squirrelflight's eyes shone with some of her old pride. "The Clan needs you too," she insisted.

Sandstorm's gaze wandered across the camp to where Dustpelt was talking with Brackenfur, as she remembered their conversation.

Squirrelflight followed her gaze. "Sometimes we forget that we aren't the only ones who have suffered; every cat in the Clans has lost someone, in the Great Battle or not. Dustpelt is still grieving, isn't he? Have you talked with him recently?"

Sandstorm nodded. "We had a long conversation today on the hunting patrol."

Squirrelflight tilted her head curiously. "About what?"

"The past, present, and future," Sandstorm said vaguely. "We've been through a lot together, right from when Bluestar made us apprentices in the old forest. It was good to talk with him, to find comfort in our shared loss."

Squirrelflight nodded. She turned to Sandstorm. "Will you consider seeing Leafpool now? Maybe you can help each other."

Sandstorm contemplated it for a moment. "Yes, I'll go see her right now." She extended her nose to touch her daughter's. "Thank you for your concern. I've isolated myself in my grief for Firestar in the past moon, but you and Dustpelt have helped me. I know you, and Leafpool miss him too. He was your father. I love you, Squirrelflight."

"I love you too," Squirrelflight replied. She smiled sadly. "Now go see Leafpool."

Sandstorm chuckled, feeling lighter than she had in a long time as she let her paws carry her toward the medicine cat den. "I will."

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 **Hello again everyone! Welcome to Part 2 of _When The Fire Goes Out._ Thank you for reading and please leave a review. What are your thoughts on Squirrelflight and Dustpelt? I hope I've done their characters justice. Stay tuned for Part 3: Life Moves On. **

**Reviews:**

 **DaughterOfIris23 - THANK YOU!**

 **The Unnamed Guest - Thank you! It's a good super edition, about Crowfeather after the Great Battle and how he deals with issues like his relationship with Breezepelt. I suggest you look up a better summary :)**

 **A Warrior At Heart**


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